Stream VietNam’s New Record and Read Our Exclusive Interview

“I hate explaining everything because it’s kinda like watching a movie before reading a book,â€ says VietNam frontman Michael Gerner. â€œAnd then, once you read the book, all you see is the actor, you know?â€

Oh, we know; that’s why we were happy to run a two-part story on the band. First up: a special Free Association feature from our winter issue, where Gerner reshapes the lyrics and carefully developed concepts of his new album (an A.merican D.ream, available tomorrow through Mexican Summer) into an actual play, stage directions and all. Now before you get confused, here’s the best way to experience it–start by cuing the exclusive “musical companion piece” Gerner cut under his D.A. guise below. Make sure it’s playing the first time you read through Gerner’s ‘commentary’; then sample the album itself, track-by-track, the second time around.

We’re told it all makes sense in the end. And if it doesn’t, well, the second part of this post is an extensive interview where Gerner explains his whereabouts over the past few years (everywhere from porn sets to an End of Days documentary) and why he drove cross-country with nothing but a suitcase and Jonathan Toubin by his side…